scholarly journals Combining Chalcones with Donepezil to Inhibit Both Cholinesterases and Aβ Fibril Assembly

Molecules ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 77 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nishad Thamban Chandrika ◽  
Marina Y. Fosso ◽  
Oleg V. Tsodikov ◽  
Harry LeVine ◽  
Sylvie Garneau-Tsodikova

The fact that the number of people with Alzheimer’s disease is increasing, combined with the limited availability of drugs for its treatment, emphasize the need for the development of novel effective therapeutics for treating this brain disorder. Herein, we focus on generating 12 chalcone-donepezil hybrids, with the goal of simultaneously targeting amyloid-β (Aβ) peptides as well as cholinesterases (i.e., acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE)). We present the design, synthesis, and biochemical evaluation of these two series of novel 1,3-chalcone-donepezil (15a–15f) or 1,4-chalcone-donepezil (16a–16f) hybrids. We evaluate the relationship between their structures and their ability to inhibit AChE/BChE activity as well as their ability to bind Aβ peptides. We show that several of these novel chalcone-donepezil hybrids can successfully inhibit AChE/BChE as well as the assembly of N-biotinylated Aβ(1–42) oligomers. We also demonstrate that the Aβ binding site of these hybrids differs from that of Pittsburgh Compound B (PIB).

Antioxidants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 962
Author(s):  
Arif Andra ◽  
Shoko Tanigawa ◽  
Tomohiro Bito ◽  
Atsushi Ishihara ◽  
Fumio Watanabe ◽  
...  

High homocysteine (Hcy) levels, mainly caused by vitamin B12 deficiency, have been reported to induce amyloid-β (Aβ) formation and tau hyperphosphorylation in mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease. However, the relationship between B12 deficiency and Aβ aggregation is poorly understood, as is the associated mechanism. In the current study, we used the transgenic C. elegans strain GMC101, which expresses human Aβ1–42 peptides in muscle cells, to investigate the effects of B12 deficiency on Aβ aggregation–associated paralysis. C. elegans GMC101 was grown on nematode growth medium with or without B12 supplementation or with 2-O-α-D-glucopyranosyl-L-ascorbic acid (AsA-2G) supplementation. The worms were age-synchronized by hypochlorite bleaching and incubated at 20 °C. After the worms reached the young adult stage, the temperature was increased to 25 °C to induce Aβ production. Worms lacking B12 supplementation exhibited paralysis faster and more severely than those that received it. Furthermore, supplementing B12-deficient growth medium with AsA-2G rescued the paralysis phenotype. However, AsA-2G had no effect on the aggregation of Aβ peptides. Our results indicated that B12 supplementation lowered Hcy levels and alleviated Aβ toxicity, suggesting that oxidative stress caused by elevated Hcy levels is an important factor in Aβ toxicity.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda Hanbouch ◽  
Béatrice Schaack ◽  
Amal Kasri ◽  
Gaëlle Fontaine ◽  
Eleni Gkanatsiou ◽  
...  

AbstractBackgroundThe brains of patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) reveal increased cellular membrane levels of cholesterol. Correspondingly, we previously showed that elevating levels of membrane cholesterol in neuronal cultures recapitulates early AD phenotypes including excessive cleavage of amyloid β (Aβ) peptides from the amyloid precursor protein (APP). Here we aimed to evaluate how the presence of a cholesterol-binding site (CBS) in the transmembrane and juxtamembrane regions of APP regulates its processing.MethodsWe generated seven single and two double APP mutants at amino acid positions 22, 26, 28, 29, 33, 39 of the Aβ sequence changing the charge and/or hydrophobicity of the targeted amino acids. HEK293T cells were transfected with APP constructs and secreted Aβ peptides were measured using ELISA and mass spectrometry (MS). APP processing in normal and high cholesterol condition, and endocytosis were assessed in stably expressing APPwt and APPK28A HEK293T clones. Finally, we measured the binding of synthetic peptides derived from the Aβ sequence to cholesterol-rich exosomes purified from control HEK293T cells.ResultsMost mutations triggered a reduction in the production of Aβ40 and Aβ42 peptides, whereas only juxtamembrane mutants resulted in the generation of shorter Aβ peptides. We confirmed by mass spectrometry this specific change in the profile of secreted Aβ peptides for the most characteristic APPK28A mutant. A transient increase of plasma membrane cholesterol enhanced the production of Aβ40 by APPWT, an effect absent with APPK28A. The enzymatic activity of α-, β- and γ-secretases remained unchanged in cells expressing APPK28A. Similarly, APPK28A subcellular localization in early endosomes did not differ to APPWT. Finally, WT but not CBS mutant Aβ derived peptides bound to cholesterol-rich exosomes.ConclusionsTaken together, these data reveal a major role of the juxtamembrane region of APP in binding to cholesterol and accordingly in the regulation of APP processing. Binding of cholesterol to K28 could staple APP to the juxtamembrane region thereby permitting access to γ-secretase cleavage at positions 40-42. The APPK28 mutant would lie deeper in the membrane, facilitating the production of shorter Aβ peptides and unveiling this specific region as a novel target for reducing the production of toxic Aβ species.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Paul Theo Zebhauser ◽  
Achim Berthele ◽  
Marie-Sophie Franz ◽  
Oliver Goldhardt ◽  
Janine Diehl-Schmid ◽  
...  

Background: Tau proteins are established biomarkers of neuroaxonal damage in a wide range of neurodegenerative conditions. Although measurement of total-Tau in the cerebrospinal fluid is widely used in research and clinical settings, the relationship between age and total-Tau in the cerebrospinal fluid is yet to be fully understood. While past studies reported a correlation between age and total-Tau in the cerebrospinal fluid of healthy adults, in clinical practice the same cut-off value is used independently of patient’s age. Objective: To further explore the relationship between age and total-Tau and to disentangle neurodegenerative from drainage-dependent effects. Methods: We analyzed cerebrospinal fluid samples of 76 carefully selected cognitively healthy adults and included amyloid-β 1–40 as a potential marker of drainage from the brain’s interstitial system. Results: We found a significant correlation of total-Tau and age, which was no longer present when correcting total-Tau for amyloid-β 1–40 concentrations. These findings were replicated under varied inclusion criteria. Conclusion: Results call into question the association of age and total-Tau in the cerebrospinal fluid. Furthermore, they suggest diagnostic utility of amyloid-β 1–40 as a possible proxy for drainage-mechanisms into the cerebrospinal fluid when interpreting biomarker concentrations for neurodegenerative diseases.


2013 ◽  
Vol 438 (4) ◽  
pp. 765-771 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suk Kyung Lee ◽  
Hyunyoung Kim ◽  
You-Hoon Cheong ◽  
Min-Ju Kim ◽  
Sangmee Ahn Jo ◽  
...  

2015 ◽  
Vol 17 (26) ◽  
pp. 16886-16893 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xu Wang ◽  
Xianqiang Sun ◽  
Guanglin Kuang ◽  
Hans Ågren ◽  
Yaoquan Tu

The investigation of the (ZAβ3)2:Aβ complex highlights the energetic contribution of affibody residues to the binding with alzheimer's disease associated Aβ peptides.


1985 ◽  
Vol 230 (1) ◽  
pp. 169-179 ◽  
Author(s):  
M R Edwards ◽  
M I Bird ◽  
E D Saggerson

The overt form of carnitine palmitoyltransferase (CPT1) in rat liver and heart mitochondria was inhibited by DL-2-bromopalmitoyl-CoA and bromoacetyl-CoA. S-Methanesulphonyl-CoA inhibited liver CPT1. The inhibitory potency of DL-2-bromopalmitoyl-CoA was 17 times greater with liver than with heart CPT1. Inhibition of CPT1 by DL-2-bromopalmitoyl-CoA was unaffected by 5,5′-dithiobis-(2-nitrobenzoic acid) or (in liver) by starvation. In experiments in which DL-2-bromopalmitoyl-CoA displaced [14C]malonyl-CoA bound to liver mitochondria, the KD (competing) was 25 times the IC50 for inhibition of CPT1 providing evidence that the malonyl-CoA-binding site is unlikely to be the same as the acyl-CoA substrate site. Bromoacetyl-CoA inhibition of CPT1 was more potent in heart than in liver mitochondria and was diminished by 5,5′-dithiobis-(2-nitrobenzoic acid) or (in liver) by starvation. Bromoacetyl-CoA displaced bound [14C]malonyl-CoA from heart and liver mitochondria. In heart mitochondria this displacement was competitive with malonyl-CoA and was considerably facilitated by L-carnitine. In liver mitochondria this synergism between carnitine and bromoacetyl-CoA was not observed. It is suggested that bromoacetyl-CoA interacts with the malonyl-CoA-binding site of CPT1. L-Carnitine also facilitated the displacement by DL-2-bromopalmitoyl-CoA of [14C]malonyl-CoA from heart, but not from liver, mitochondria. DL-2-Bromopalmitoyl-CoA and bromoacetyl-CoA also inhibited overt carnitine octanoyl-transferase in liver and heart mitochondria. These findings are discussed in relation to inter-tissue differences in (a) the response of CPT1 activity to various inhibitors and (b) the relationship between high-affinity malonyl-CoA-binding sites and those sites for binding of L-carnitine and acyl-CoA substrates.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document